Occasionally, the trappings of wealth like fast cars, fine wines and important works of art are also among the best investments. Examples abound: take singer and songwriter Chris de Burgh, who sold his most precious wines last year including a case of Château Lafite Rothschild 1945 for US $552,000,

or almost double the collection guide price; Baron Guy Ullenscollection of contemporary Chinese art was proved cannier still just months later, after a part of it fetched US$ 55 million at auction in Hong Kong.

In the late 1980s, Ullens bought a painting a day for roughly UD$ 5,000 per artwork and assembled a collection of a breadth and depth so significant that it defined the era.

Pink Floyd drummer Nick Mason prefers cars, and has a collection of 40 classic models that he regularly races at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, for instance. His 1962 Ferrari 250 GTO has entered into competitions every year since it was built, but is still among the most valuable cars in the world. An almost identical model was sold privately for US$ 35 million in June, realising a tenfold profit: in 1996, it was sold for just $3,5 million.

While it clear that collections of rare or otherwise precious goods can pay healthy dividends, they can just as easily prove wasteful: wine can spoil, art is extremely unpredictable and decades can pass before a verdict is reached on even the most expensive cars, defining them as classics. The trick is to know what to buy, and to have some influence within the market, which is why collectible or treasure funds make sense for all but the most enthusiastic, knowledgeable or wealthy investors. One such fund is the Xiling Group, which invests in Chinese artworks and antiques. It has raised a total of US$ 42 million with two funds, guided by a set of objectives that help to make sense of how collectibles can earn healthy returns.

Overseas property is the investment of choice for a large and increasing number of mainlanders. High Yuan appreciation, luxury and surroundings exceeding their own lands, and return on investment almost guaranteed. The questions arewhere is all this money coming from, are Asian buyers propping up overseas realty markets,

will this trend of buying continue, is much of China wealth leaving the country, and when the bubble eventually bursts in China will there be a mass sell of overseas property or will there be exodus.

The Chinese property bubble has already burstthe only people who have not noticed are the ones trying to buy their first home. Professional investors and 2nd home buyers are finding it harder to add to their property portfolio with the belated government home buying restrictions. Since 2010, 2nd and 3rd tier cities in China saw developers slashing new build prices by up to 50 percent, while 1st tier city prices are stable due to hard working class locals and migrants looking for their first home. The further you travel out of the city limits there are many bargains from housing developers who are finding it hard to sell at the original planned price.

It makes sense to look elsewhere if you have the money to splash. The overheated Asian realty market (especially in China) now accounts to the 30 percent of overseas global home purchases by Asian. It a well known that Asian buyers propped up London luxury property market when it was stale, and will continue to do so around the world. Other factors driving Asia overseas spending spree are currency devaluation and tight bank lending practices in the EU, UK and U.S. As long as these factors continue the trend of buying overseas property will continue.

The day will eventually come when China has to turn consumer, an internal economy, out priced by other nationshunger for what they have. Cheaper labor overseas and the heated Yuan valuation will contribute to the problems facing China future GDP. This could very well be from the USA with a thwarting currency, some Western European countries, struggling Asian countries or even Africa. When you look at what a hungry beast an international corporation isthe way they were attracted to China for use of cheap labor. They will as easy leave as they came. China heightened technology and local economy will keep them floating, for a time. At the level of governmental finance and global economy, all the trillions in China foreign currency reserve will not help them, as the more they sell the higher the value of their own Yuan currency will go. In the current situation, the only reason China buys billions in EU and U.S. bonds is to keep the value of these currencies high, ensuring the Yuan currency stays at a reasonable low level, which keeps international trade rolling in. In a global financial geo political level, owning an overseas property may not see a return on investment when considering currency, inflation and the local market, but it is seen as a safe investment, much like a low yielding Bond which does not even beat inflation.

What goes up must come down, and if China crashes as high as it rose, having a couple of homes around the world will come in handy, to sell or to live.

One man loss is another man gain

Fractional reserve banking and easy money- mortgages and bank loans in over developed economies created the property bubble, which bust in 2008, knocking-off ten years price appreciation from housing, which was followed by the fear factor around the world causing a mass exodus from stock markets pushing the wise investors into cash deposits, currencies and bonds.

Much of the spare cash sitting in the banks and cash deposits of weary investors from financial markets found its way into the global luxury housing scene. The attraction being market correlated prices, high rent yields, guaranteed return on investment mid to long term. Plus the people who buy expensive things are usually the ones with cash to burn. In harsh economic times the wealthy keep on spending. Luxury properties in key locations and well desirable post codes around the world have continued to climb steadily, at the same time, working class and lower class housing has taken a beating.

Chinese property investors have spread their wings far and wide for all sorts of reasonsvacation homes, children studying abroad, emigration, pure investment, or just somewhere stable to save wealth (in bricks and mortar).

Mainlanders have taken over from those in Hong Kong and Taiwan to become the largest immigrant community in Canada. In addition, London and Melbourne are also hot cities which are attractive to mainland property investors. Luxury houses are preferred.

Big spenders are mainly from southeast China, such as Shanghai, Hangzhou and Wenzhou; in addition to Beijing and cities along the coast, many are the owners of local private enterprises who regard high price luxury housing as investment objectives more than half of the transactions are one-off payments.

Much of the new interest in overseas real estate is linked to the ongoing debate and current restrictions set by the Chinese central government in buying multiple homes on the mainland. Up-front capital to buy a first home can be between 30 and 50 percent, putting stress onto new home buyers, combined with the current tight bank lending trend, puts a stale outlook in China housing market for the coming three to five year.

The rising number of Chinese overseas property buyers has been well noticed, accounting for purchases in 2012, Chinese mainlanders made up 30 percent of investments in London, Toronto, Vancouver, and Singapore. The large amount of transactions in London for instance (six billion pounds) has boosted central London property valuations while surrounding boroughs have not risen in value.Overseas buyers look to find haven investments to protect their wealth from the turmoil affecting other asset classes. As with most investments, there is a risk levelis the protection of capital more important than return on investment?

Hong Kong Not so Hot/b>

Prices of residential properties in Hong Kong are currently the highest in the world but investors are turning away due to the Hong Kong government's enforcement of a new 15 percent buyer's stamp duty on non-locals and corporate buyers that was introduced on 26 October 2012. Hong Kong is no longer one of Asia's top investment destinations due to its sky high property prices. Hong Kong emerged 11th most desirable Asian property investment location this year, with Jakarta taking the Hotspot, followed by Shanghai and Singapore.

At the same time, Western based developers and property vendors are keen to sell to Chinese investors. It a hard market to access with a complex range of language, culture, social and economic differences.

Everlasting Price Tag

It not just London or New York that hold all the glitz and glam. Every city in the world has its own well heeled neighborhood, which are being looked upon as collector pieces, where prices will go as high as the buyer is willing to pay. The price tag on property in these famous streets will start from seven digits, in dollars, euro or sterling: Steiner Street, Avenue Foch, Nettleton Road, Hambros Alle, Andrassy Avenue, Tower Road, Ostozhenka Street, Avinguda Pearson, Herengracht, and Avenue Princess Grace are amongst many high end locations which attract the big spenders. And these are just the tip of the iceberg, off the top of my head.

UK

While UK buyers continue to be held back by economic uncertainty and mortgage drought, mainland Chinese investors have money to spend. The country has the fourth largest number of high net worth individuals in the world. And, following recent changes in taxation in China and with the exchange rate on the Chinese Yuan up 50% against the Sterling since the end of 2007, they have a real appetite to spend it in the UK.

Properties in key locations in fancy neighborhoods in Kensington, Virginia Water, and Chelsea have an average house price between two and five million pounds. Chinese buyers accounted for more than 5% of residential purchases in central London in 2012.

Australia

Overseas buyers made up 30 per cent of the Australian market for 2012. Singaporean, Hong Kong, and Malaysians were among the buyers. Chinese investment is being driven by rising wealth and appreciating Yuan- a desire for secure investments and freehold laws. Unlike in China, once a buyer purchases property in Australia, it's theirs forever and can be passed down from one generation to the next.

Another factor driving investment is the Australian education system. There are 160,000 Chinese students in Australia, and many Chinese families who can afford it would prefer to buy an apartment nearby.

Buyers from Shanghai ranged from two-bedroom apartments priced at $300,000 to a luxury beach-front home for $18 million around Melbourne.

Wolseley Road in Sydney is the most expensive residential street in Australia and its status stands as Australia's ultimate address, with 16 of the top 100 most expensive houses in Sydney.

USA

A new wave of buyers from China are snapping up luxury properties across the U.S., injecting billions of dollars into the country's residential-real-estate market. Super rich investors credited with pushing up prices in London are now looking to California as the US real estate market looks to lift itself up off the ground.

While lenders are still keen to avert foreclosures by extending loans, so-called distressed inventory is starting to sell because banks are now in a better position to absorb greater losses and free up capacity on their balance sheets.

The Chinese are now the second largest foreign buyers of US homes behind Canadians, accounting for 11% of sales, up from 9% in the previous year. Data released by the National Association of Realtors showed that international sales reached $82.4 billion in 2012, up from $66.4 billion in 2011.

The industry is scrambling to court the new buyers. Some developers of new projects are installing wok kitchens, following feng shui principles and putting lucky numbers on choice units; others are packaging property sales with new government residency programs designed to encourage foreign investment.

In Los Angeles, New York and Miami, buyers mostly from China- some from Hong Kong, Singapore and Korea, are radically altering the landscape. Last month, a Chinese couple paid $34.5 million for a Versailles-style mansion on Sunset Boulevard in Beverly Hills, California. A year earlier, a Hong Kong businessman paid around $28 million for a nearby estate. Over the last six months in New York, several full-floor apartments in a new Manhattan high-rise called One57, each with a price tag of roughly $50 million, have gone into contract with Chinese buyers.

Another big spender was Fang Yi Liu, a businessman from Shanghai, snapping up 17 apartments for a total of $14 million in the Artech, a modern glass building resembling a cruise ship that overlooks the Intracoastal Waterway near Miami.

Los Angeles is enjoying its biggest influx of foreign capital for years. The state is the financial hub of the US West Coast, with Los Angeles already home to the highest number of foreign born billionaires and Fortune 500 company chief executives outside New York.

As uncertainty stifles global financial markets, real estate with strong rental prospects in key cities across the United States is again becoming an asset of choice for the yield hungry international property investor.

When it comes to a luxury investment product, many people will naturally imagine a luxury mansion on top of the hill.

Luxury apartments, single family houses or great mansions symbolize the value and boost the ego of the Chinese investors. Among the best images are New York Manhattan apartments, London courtyard mansions, or California Beverley hills properties. However, high value does not automatically equate to best value. As savvy investors, we should be looking for potential value appreciation.

Today, I would like to suggest the real properties in Silicon Valley possess the best value in offshore luxury investment. In fact this prime location already calls homes to millions of Chinese.

Silicon Valley (or San Francisco Bay Area in a broader sense) gets its nice reputation mainly from the huge selection of greatly successful high tech companies. The well-known household names include Apple, Cisco, Oracle, Facebook, Yahoo, Twister, E-bay, Hewett Packard, and Applied Materials and so on. The abundance of successful companies has everything to do with the highly skillful workforce, entrepreneurship spirits and venture capital funding. It boasts some of the finest universities such as Stanford University and University of California at Berkeley. It also attracts millions graduates from top universities and colleges around the globe. In addition, Silicon Valley is also a home to a good number of top high schools in the nation. One recent insanity phenomena was created by Jeremy Lin, who is the proud product of Palo Altos High, one of the top Silicon Valley high schools. No doubt that Silicon Valley presents one of the finest places on the planet to realize youngster dreams and it should grab your attention by now.

New Chinese immigrates to US find out very soon the degree of importance of high school scores and rankings on the housing value. If you are lucky to own a single family house in one of these schools districts (Monta Vista, Fremont mission, Palo Altos and west San Jose Lynbrook high schools) over the past 5 years, you would find out that the value of your house dropped the least during 2008 financial crisis and rebounded the most during the past 3 years. In fact, in some of the high end markets, home prices have gone up sizably even comparing with the peak in 2005. A few good examples include Saratoga up 23% from 2005 peak and Los Gatos up 8% during the same period.

Even though the real property prices today in San Francisco Bay Area have been up significantly from their low points in early 2009, I still believe it has more room to go up in the short term and long terms. It should still be one of your top picks in oversea luxury investments. Here are some of the key reasons to invest in Silicon Valley properties, in addition to the good fundamental cultural, liberal and infrastructural supports offered in this prime location.

1. The 30-year fixed mortgage in the US has reached a new low, at 3.36%, providing the good backdrop of housing affordability.

2. Stronger economy in US and lower unemployment rate (a recent indication of 7.7%) will continue to fuel the rebound of housing markets.

3. The median price of single-family homes showed gains of 14-21 percent in all five counties of San Francisco Bay Area, compared to the previous year. This momentum may still have legs.

4. A market with low inventory and active buyers creates upward pressure on prices. The following three points explain why the inventory is low and the demand is high.

5. Relaxing US immigration policy attracts more Chinese buyers and investors of US properties. The recently extended EB-5 immigration policy allows foreigners with as little as $500,000 investment money to apply for US immigration with the entire family. The money has to be invested in qualified development zones. One number of big projects is recently approved in the center of San Jose and other places in Silicon Valley. For the year of 2012 so far, at least 80% of the total EB-5 immigration applications were filed by Chinese citizens. This easy immigration policy opens the gate for the flooding Chinese. Meanwhile, on the contrary, the Canada government recently has closed the door to Chinese immigrants due to the fact that Chinese immigrants has i-jackedthe Canada house markets. The huge demands in Canada real properties (especially in Vancouver and Toronto) from Chinese immigrants pushed the housing prices to a record level, totally out of reach for the local Canadian residents. Because of this reason, more Chinese are expected to switch their immigration focus to US.

6. Returning expatriates are also picking up steam, buying properties in US recently. For the past decade, emerging market countries such as China, Thailand, and Vietnam, Philippine and so on, are the desirable destination of choices for American citizens to travel, find jobs and settle down. American found it extremely affordable to live in these countries. The notions of loosening rules and abundance of jobs are also appealing to them. However, the time has changed and the tides have gone the other way. US dollar has been depreciating gradually; the ultra-high inflation in emerging markets is eating up their income and savings; increasingly catch-up or competitions from local workforce talents are pushing them to the edge. Alarming number of American expats found out lives are not easy in these countries, not to mention other annoying issues such as the culture shocks, unacceptable health standards and tougher foreign rules designed to rip them off. Besides, both domestic and foreign companies in these emerging countries found it increasing expensive and not practical to continue to hire American expats to run and manage the local operations. As a result, many American expats are forced to quit the job or sent back home unwillingly. When they return, the first issue on their mind is of course housing.

7. Most of the Chinese (no matter originally from mainland China, Taiwan or Hong Kong) in Silicon Valley are working in the high tech related industries such as internet, computer, biotech semiconductor and all kinds of engineering. The Skillset requirements in these industries are relatively high and the associated pays are relative noble. A study in 2003 has showed that the median salary in Bay area is around $70,000, far exceeding the nationwide average of $35,000. For high skilled engineers, the based salary easily tops $100,000. Nowhere in the world can beat that. Even so, great salary alone is no good enough to explain the high prices of Silicon Valley real properties. The true reason behind the noble price is company stock options, which is truly the wealth making machine. It could be in the form of restricted stock (RS), employee stock purchase plan (ESPP), incentive stock option (ISO), cashless grants or other kind of compensation programs. The jackpot comes the day when your employed company goes IPO. If a Chinese software engineer, for instance, joins Google well before it goes IPO, he has a good chance to become millionaire the day after Google go public. In fact, tens of thousands of Chinese became overnight millionaires when the IPO, M&A and other financial buyout schemes of their associated companies become a reality. These get-rich-quick models attract a tremendous number of Chinese to the Bay Area.

8. The 2008 financial crisis has made a huge crash in home prices all over the US. Over one third of the properties see the home market value go below the mortgage owed. As a result, foreclosure (the banks control the sale process) and short sales (the homeowners control the sale process) sizes becomes common scene in the neighborhoods. Silicon Valley is not an exception, however. Most of the foreclosures and short sales happened in San Jose area, which accounts for half of the shorts sales deals in Silicon Valley. During the past year, wee seen short sales overtake the foreclosure process as the procedure of choice to deal with homeowner distress. That may change after New Year because the temporary ebt forgivenessfeature in the tax code is set to expire as part of the so-called iscal cliff In light of this, more homeowners are rushing short sales to the deadline and less short sales are expected over next year or so. This action will be likely to further reduce the inventory supply of the housing, leading to an increase in housing prices in the near future.

9. Silicon Valley is the place to incubate the most startup companies. It is the true leader of setting the tone over technological trends. All of its achievements cannot make possible without the great engines angel, venture capital (VC), private equity (PE) or other kinds of funding. A great number of well-known and influential VC and PE companies locate at the heart of Silicon Valley, named Menlo Park or Palo Altos. Sequoia, IDG and Andreessen Horowitz, just names a few.

10.The home prices in most of the Silicon Valley areas have rebounded significantly over the 2009 low, while majority of other housing markets in US are still suffering great loss, comparing to the peak of 2006. At this juncture, are you willing to bet on the continuous success of Silicon Valley and its property value or invest some other regions where prices are low but the markets are dead? It is your choice. Don forget the lesson we learned from our marketing class in college: location, location, location.